Rumours suggest that Apple's next iPhone will see the introduction of a tiny 8-pin dock connector

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A new report suggests that the next iPhone will have an 8-pin dock connector, and that iOS 6 will introduce a new Bluetooth 4.0 device linking and function-sharing feature.

The smaller dock connector that is expected to be introduced when the iPhone 5 launches in September could be 8-pins, rather than the 19-pin dock connector we've been hearing rumours about. The current dock connector in Apple's iOS devices has a 30-pin design.

iLounge cites two sources who have both claimed that the new dock connector will have eight pins. This connector could also have other new design aspects, including the ability to be connected to docks and cables in either orientation, in a similar way to the MagSafe connectors used for MacBooks.

A source also told iLounge that Apple is planning to introduce an enhanced Bluetooth 4.0 link that would enable devices to share functionality. "The feature would enable, say, a future iPod nano to display iMessages received by an iPhone, record voice memos that could be shared via the iPhone, and even initiate phone calls through its own headphones," reads the report. "It could also conceivably let you make iPhone calls from your iPad (or possibly even recent Macs), assuming the iPhone was paired with the computer over Bluetooth."

The iPhone 4S was the first mobile phone to get Bluetooth 4.0, the recently launched MacBooks have the technology, as does the new iPad, indicating that Apple is planning to include it in all of its future devices (until more advanced connectivity is available).